Research Summary and Profile

Research interests:

Human rights, International Law, International Relations, Political Institutions

Regions:

South America

Summary of research interests and expertise:

Dr David James Cantor researches on the protection of refugees and other displaced persons. He has carried out in-depth fieldwork on displacement, armed conflict and organised violence in Colombia and across Latin America, and is a recognised specialist in this field. David has a particular interest in refugee law, human rights law and certain aspects of the international law of armed conflict. He previously worked for the Refugee Legal Centre and UNHCR, and is currently the Director of the Refugee Law Initiative and an Economic and Social Research Council Future Research Leader.

During 2016-17, Dr Cantor will be working part-time at the university in order to carry out a part-time secondment as Senior Advisor to the UNHCR Americas Bureau.

Consultancy Study prepared for the Nansen Initiative/Regional Conference on Migration Workshop on Development of Guidelines on Admission and Stay for People Moving in Context of Disasters in the Region of the Regional Conference on Migration, San José, Costa Rica, February 2015 (Available in both English and Spanish)

Book Chapter in D.J. Cantor, F. Freier and J.P. Gauci (eds.), A Liberal Tide? Immigration and Asylum Law and Policy in Latin America (ILAS Publications, University of London), jointly with F. Freier and J.P. Gauci

Conference paper based on - but further developing - the ideas and research put forwad in the research paper 'A Simple Solution to War Refugees? The Latin American Expanded Definition and its relationship to IHL' by D.J. Cantor and D. Trimino Mora. The paper was presented to the UNHCR-organised Expert Meeting on 'Interpretation of the Refugee Definition Included in the 1984 Cartagena Declaration on Refugees' held on 15 and 16 October 2013 in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Publications available on SAS-space:

The report of the expert conference examining the nature and dynamics of the role of the International Criminal Court in the ongoing investigation and prosecution of atrocious crimes committed in Colombia.
Convened by the Human Rights Consortium, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies and the Institute for the Study of the Americas at the School of Advanced Study, University of London
University of London, 26–27 May 2011.

This international conference set out to chart new trends in migration, asylum and policymaking in Latin America. The key question behind the conference was whether the migration and asylum policies developed in Latin America over the past decade offer a new model distinct from the increasingly restrictive and securitized policies of European and
North American States. The key questions the conference sought to tackle were the following: Is Latin America moving towards a liberal exceptionalism in the field of migration
and asylum policy-making? And if so, what explains this liberal paradigm shift? Regional and country specific perspectives where presented through four panels, which brought together leading specialists from Latin America, the US and Europe to showcase and debate these novel developments.

This international conference set out to chart new trends in migration, asylum and policy-making in Latin America. The key question behind the conference was whether the migration and asylum policies developed in Latin America over the past decade offer a new model distinct from the increasingly restrictive and securitized policies of European and North American States. The key questions the conference sought to tackle were the following: Is Latin America moving towards a liberal exceptionalism in the field of migration and asylum policy-making? And if so, what explains this liberal paradigm shift? Regional and country specific perspectives where presented through four panels, which brought together leading specialists from Latin America, the US and Europe to showcase and debate these novel developments.

How does international law require States acting outside their own territories to treat refugees and other persons fleeing harm in their countries?1 This question has assumed increasing contemporary relevance in light of heightened externalised border controls, such as attempts by States to interdict migrant boats on the high seas in the Mediterranean (see, for instance Moreno-Lax 2012). However, the issue also arises in other contemporary scenarios, such as where persons seek protection in diplomatic or consular premises, where one State militarily occupies the territory of another, and where a State sets up a system for the extraterritorial processing of asylum claims.
This short analysis addresses the non-refoulement aspect of this extraterritoriality problem, i.e. protection against enforced removal to a territory where the person fears harm by a State acting outside its own territory. Inspired by the human rights focus of the volume overall, the chapter draws on current research by the author in order to examine this ever-topical concern against recent advances in the field of international human rights law. It not only confirms the view that the non-refoulement rule in human rights law applies extraterritorially, but also concludes that the resulting procedural implications should be taken seriously both for human rights law and for refugee law

The flurry of interest around the European refugee crisis, whilst plainly justified, should not have the effect of distracting international attention from equally pressing humanitarian and refugee crises in other parts of the world. As such, this article highlights the extreme nature and scale of gang violence in the Northern Triangle countries of Central America, which has resulted in substantial forced displacement of affected populations. The article argues that, despite certain commonalities with situations of internal armed conflict (such as Syria), the scenario in the Northern Triangle poses a distinct set of additional challenges for ensuring the protection of refugees and displaced persons from these countries. The urgent need to address these challenges in the Americas is no less than for those presented by the current refugee crisis in Europe.

Prepared within framework of ESRC project and for UNHCR-OAS High-Level Roundtable Call to Action: Protection Needs in Northern Triangle of Central America (as a consultant for UNHCR Bureau for the Americas)

2015

Study on ‘Existing State Law, Policy and Practice on Temporary Protection Mechanisms for Natural Disasters: States of the Regional Conference on Migration and Others in the Americas’

Prepared within framework of ESRC project and as a consultant to the Nansen Initiative for the February 2015 Regional Conference on Migration/Nansen Initiative Workshop on 'Development of Guidelines on Admission and Stay for People Moving the Context of Disasters in the Region of the Regional Conference on Migration', San José, Costa Rica.

Prepared within framework of ESRC project and as a consultant to the Nansen Initiative for the February 2015 Regional Conference on Migration/Nansen Initiative Workshop on 'Development of Guidelines on Admission and Stay for People Moving the Context of Disasters in the Region of the Regional Conference on Migration', San José, Costa Rica.

Prepared within framework of ESRC project and as a consultant to UNHCR Bureau for the Americas / Department of International Protection

Government/policy work:

Date

Details

2016

Comments to UNHCR on its Draft Guidelines on International Protection on claims to refugee status related to situations of armed violence and conflict (February 2016 draft)

2015

Comments to the Intergovernmental Consultations on Migration, Asylum and Refugees on their ‘Forecasting (Forced) Migration Flows’ policy discussion document

2014

Comments to UNHCR on its Summary Conclusions on the 1984 Cartagena Declaration’s Refugee Definition

2014

Comments to UNHCR Sub-regional meeting of Mesoamerican States on Proposals for Cartagena+30 Framework

2013

February 2013 Amicus Curiae Submission on 'Transnational Reparations' to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the Case of Lucero-García v Chile

2013

Annex 3 to 'Application for Thematic Hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on Practice, Processes and Problems in Refugee Status Determination Procedures in the Americas'

The application refers to the article authored by the Principal Investigator David Cantor (jointly with Stefania Barichello) entitled 'Protection of Asylum-Seekers under the Inter-American Human Rights System', which is also included as Annex 3. The application was submitted to the Inter-American Commission on 23 August 2013 by the following Latin American non-governmental organisations: Asylum Access Ecuador (AAE), U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Sin Fronteras I.A.P, Centro por la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional (CEJIL), Refugee Council U.S.A. (RCUSA), Instituto Migrações e Direitos Humanos (IMDH), International Detention Coalition (IDC), Observatorio Migrantes del Caribe (OBMICA), Clínica de Derecho Internacional de Derechos Humanos de American University Washington College of Law en Washington, D.C. y la Consultoría para los Derechos Humanos y el Desplazamiento (CODHES). On 1 October 2013, the application was granted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and a hearing listed for 31 October 2013.

Paper presented on Legal Responses to Gangs, Criminal Violence and New Dynamics of Forced Displacement in the Americas and Africa panel at Refugee Law Initiative Annual Conference on The Future of Refugee Law?, UK

Keynote paper presented at Migration Research Workshop on Re-Interpreting the Refugee Definition: Global Displacement in 2016, University of Sheffield, UK

12-May-2016

Presenter, ‘Protection, Surrogacy and Defining Refugees’

Invited paper presented on 2015/16 Seminar Series on the Axis of Protection: Human Rights in International Law / Refugee and Migration Law Discussion Group, University of Oxford, UK

12-May-2016

Presenter, ‘What Happens after an Asylum-Seeker is Excluded under Article 1F?’

Paper presented by remote means on Roundtable on Setting Policy Standards for those who are Excluded from Convention Refugee Status but cannot be Returned to their Countries of Origin panel at the CARFMS Annual Conference, Canada

Event convened by International Commission of Jurists, bringing together wide range of academics and practitioners

01-Jan-2015

Co-convenor, Workshop on ‘Refugee Law and International Humanitarian Law’

UNHCR/ICRC Inter-Agency Discussion and Book Launch at UNHCR, Geneva, Switzerland

01-Jan-2015

Co-convenor, Workshop on ‘Refugee Protection and International Humanitarian Law’

Refugee Law Initiative/Chatham House Workshop and Book Launch at Chatham House, London, UK

01-Jan-2015

Session Chair, ‘Fronteras solidarias y seguras’

Working group and plenary sesión at Seminario de Planificación “La Declaración y el Plan de Acción de Brasil 2015-2024: el reto de su implementación”, 5 March 2015, International Institute of Humanitarian Law, San Remo, Italy

Academic Director, Short Course on 'International Protection of Refugees and Displaced Persons' (2014)

This course offers professional participants a solid practical grounding in the protection of refugees and displaced persons under international law throughout an intensive four-day period delivered by leading academic experts and practitioners in the field.

01-Jan-2014

Co-convenor, Public Event on ‘Crisis in Syria: Conflict and Refugees’

Event with three short independent films followed by expert panel discussion (jointly convened with Refugee Council)

Conference paper based on - but further developing - the ideas and research put forwad in the research paper 'A Simple Solution to War Refugees? The Latin American Expanded Definition and its relationship to IHL' by D.J. Cantor and D. Trimino Mora. The paper was presented to the UNHCR-organised Expert Meeting on 'Interpretation of the Refugee Definition Included in the 1984 Cartagena Declaration on Refugees' held on 15 and 16 October 2013 in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Translated and updated version of an academic paper written originally in English - 'A Simple Solution to War Refugees? The Latin American Expanded Definition and its relationship to IHL' by D.J. Cantor and D. Trimino Mora. Both the Spanish and the English versions were included among the background documents circulated for the UNHCR-organised Expert Meeting on 'Interpretation of the Refugee Definition Included in the 1984 Cartagena Declaration on Refugees' held on 15 and 16 October 2013 in Montevideo, Uruguay. Participants inc;uded government experts and policy makers from LAtin American States, UNHCR headquarters and Americas staff, and experts from the Inter-American Court and Commission on Human Rights, civil society and academia. During the Expert Meeting, the paper underpinned discussion and received substantial comment, reference and interest.

At Expert Workshop - 'The Role of International Organisations and Human Rights Monitoring Bodies in Refugee Protection' held in Brussels, Belgium on 24 June 2013; organised by Newcastle Law School

01-Jan-2013

Convenor, Fifth Skype Conference, RLI Doctoral Affiliates Network

February 2013

01-Jan-2013

Joint Convenor, Special Public Video-Linked Seminar on 'Treating Like Cases Alike in Refugee Law Adjudication: Comparisons between the European Union and North America'

International video-linked seminar between Canada, USA, UK and Netherlands (jointly with Centre for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada)

01-Jan-2013

Presenter, 'Concepts and History of Refugee Protection'

Part of the Short Course on 'International Protection of Refugees and Displaced Persons' (2013)

01-Jan-2013

Presenter, 'A Simple Solution to War Refugees? The Latin American Expanded Definition and its relationship to IHL’ (jointly with Diana Trimino Mora)

At International Conference - 'Refuge from Inhumanity: Enriching Refugee Protection Standards through Recourse to International Humanitarian Law'

01-Jan-2013

Presenter, 'The Principle of Non-refoulement in International Humanitarian Law: The Transfer of Civilians’

At International Conference - 'Refuge from Inhumanity: Enriching Refugee Protection Standards through Recourse to International Humanitarian Law'

01-Jan-2013

Academic Director, Short Course on 'International Protection of Refugees and Displaced Persons' (2013)

This course offers professional participants a solid practical grounding in the protection of refugees and displaced persons under international law through eight once-weekly evening sessions delivered by leading academic experts and practitioners in the field.

01-Jan-2013

Academic Director, Short Course on 'EU Asylum Law and Policy' (2013)

This course offers professional participants a solid practical grounding in EU asylum law and policy through eight once-weekly evening sessions delivered by leading academic experts and practitioners in the field.

Convenor and Presenter, Workshop on Refugee Law and Policy for High-Level Officials of Commonwealth Governments

The objective of the Workshop was to strengthen selected Commonwealth States’ capacity to protect refugees and implement priority Universal Periodic Review recommendations on refugee protection. Within the structure of a targeted training programme delivered by academic experts and leading practitioners, high-level officials charged with designing and implementing refugee policies in fifteen Commonwealth countries exchanged knowledge and perspectives, and engage with important new research and thinking in the field. The Workshop was made possible with the support of a Human Rights and Democracy Grant from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

01-Jan-2012

Presenter, 'Review Procedures for Asylum Determinations'

Presentation delivered and debated at the 'Workshop on Refugee Law and Policy for High Level Officials of Commonwealth Governments' at Session I on 14 February 2012

This course offers professional participants a solid practical grounding in the protection of refugees and displaced persons under international law through eight once-weekly evening sessions delivered by leading academic experts and practitioners in the field.

01-Jan-2012

Seminar convenor, Paper delivered by Professor Alastair Ager: 'Integration: global perspectives on the transition from being apart to being a part (of something)'

Part of the Public Seminars - jointly with Refugee Council - 'New Challenges in Refugee Integration' (2011-2012)

Part of the 2nd Seminar Series - 'International Refugee Law' (2011-2012)

01-Jan-2012

Joint-Convenor and Particpant, Roundtable on 'Country of Origin Information and Due Process'

The expert roundtable was jointly convened with the International Association of Refugee Law Judges (IARLJ) and the UNHCR. It brought together judges involved in two of the IARLJ’s Working Parties (Procedures and COI), UNHCR, leading NGOs and academics concerned with Country of Origin Information (COI), representatives of governments as well as lawyers and practitioners. Its aim was to help produce draft best practice guidelines in checklist form for judges around the world on the procedural aspects of the use and role of COI in asylum-related cases.

Panel at “Reconstructing Refuge and Settlement: Responding to the Global Dynamics of Displacement” Conference at York University, Toronto, organised by the Canadian Association for Refugee and Forced Migration Studies (CARFMS)

Panel at “Reconstructing Refuge and Settlement: Responding to the Global Dynamics of Displacement” Conference at York University, Toronto, organised by the Canadian Association for Refugee and Forced Migration Studies (CARFMS)

Joint Convenor with Refugee Council of public seminar; speaker on panel

01-Jan-2011

Convenor and Chair, Workshop on 'The Role of the ICRC in Protecting and Assisting Refugees and Displaced Persons'

The Workshop brought together key scholars and practitioners in order to explore the role played by the ICRC in the response to forced displacement and address these serious shortcomings in our knowledge. The workshop gathered fourteen participants around the table, including former and current ICRC staff, former and current staff from UNHCR and the Norwegian Refugee Council, and UK and overseas academics.

Lead paper at 'Challenges in the Prosecution of the Crime of Forced Displacement' Seminar organised by the Colombian Prosecutor's Office and Norwegian Refugee Council to train the newly created unit of the colombian prosecutor's office responsible for investigating the crime of forced displacement

Knowledge transfer activities:

Two year RLI-CICJ collaborative project funded by a research network grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) to create a global network of academics and policy makers. This group will explore a subject that has raised empirical and theoretical questions for refugee, criminal and human rights law, as well as for political philosophy and history.

The RLI aims to function as a national focal point for leading and promoting the refugee law research agenda. It will work to create a network to engage the UK community of refugee law scholars and practitioners, stimulate collaboration between academics and non-academics, and achieve policy impact at the national and international level.

This project aimed to mitigate the insecurity faced by the millions of displaced persons (desplazados) in Colombia when they return home during the protracted armed conflict.

My interdisciplinary doctoral research in Colombia has shown that:

(1) Most desplazado returns are to zones of active conflict, but returnees utilise various strategies to improve community resilience to harms and livelihood risks associated with the armed conflict. (2) State law, policy and practice display serious shortcomings, including a lack of support for returnees' local strategies to manage insecurity. (3) Local and international organisations can play a crucial role in mitigating insecurity for returnees, but often miss this opportunity.

Grounded in these research outputs, the project has promoted strategies to reinforce security for returnees through a process of dialogue and 'knowledge exchange' with the public and third sectors in Colombia. This has been achieved through a series of workshops, public debates and other targeted interventions directed towards improving the law, policy and practice of key institutions that have a determinate influence on the security of desplazado communities returning home in the midst of the armed conflict. The input of these ultimate beneficiaries has been incorporated as a crucial component of the dialogues.